The power of union endorsements

Monday

Sep 3, 2007 at 9:00 AM

Seacoast residents David Lang and John Schoch are both union members, and they are concerned about many of the same issues surrounding the Iraq war, health care, the effects of globalization, and the economic needs of working families.

Michael McCord

Seacoast residents David Lang and John Schoch are both union members, and they are concerned about many of the same issues surrounding the Iraq war, health care, the effects of globalization, and the economic needs of working families.

Where they part paths is in their choice of the right candidate to address these issues, and on this Labor Day, their choices reflect the coming battle between different unions as they choose their primary candidates to support.

Lang knows what he's doing today and every day until the first votes are cast in the New Hampshire primary.

Lang, a Hampton resident and president of the Professional Fire Fighters of New Hampshire, is attending the AFL-CIO Labor Day breakfast in Manchester with Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Chris Dodd, the candidate his organization and the larger International Association of Fire Fighters endorsed last week.

"We see a true leader," said Lang of Dodd, whose campaign secured a major boost with the IAFF backing. "For the next four months, I'm going to be telling people why we are working (for Dodd). He has stood with us, and we know where he stands. And he's going to be the next president of the United States."

Schoch has no less passion for his favorite candidate and one of Dodd's primary rivals, Sen. John Edwards.

Schoch, a Stratham resident and Vietnam War veteran, was very pleased his union, the United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America — which has more than 520,000 members nationally and more than 2,100 members in New Hampshire — endorsed Edwards last week.

"I was 100 percent for it because we really believe he's the best candidate," said Schoch, who has seen Edwards in person during the candidate's frequent Seacoast campaign stops this year. "My feeling is that he's a real down-to-earth guy, and I'm more inspired than I was in 2004."

For Schoch, one of the most important endorsements of Edwards has come from an unlikely source — his wife, Claire, a Republican who hasn't been this excited about any candidate, Democrat or Republican, in years.

With Labor Day ushering in the unofficial kickoff of the campaign season, the presidential candidates, especially on the Democratic side, are making a major push for the backing of organized labor.

In addition to the major endorsements for Edwards and Dodd, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton was endorsed by the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers.

And candidates such as Sens. Barack Obama and Joe Biden have joined others in the "Walk a Day in My Shoes" program with union members as they do their daily work.

The fight for these union endorsements can help significantly and add to the organizational strength of a campaign.

National AFL-CIO President John Sweeney has stated publicly that his organization will expend unprecedented amounts of money and organizational resources into the 2008 election, which will benefit the eventual nominee.

The IAFF and its affiliated state organizations like the PFF (which has more than 2,100 active and retired members) have a reputation for being very active and effective when it backs a candidate.

For example, the floundering 2004 New Hampshire primary candidacy of Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry was righted, in part, by the efforts of the PFF, which brought organizational might to stirring up grass-roots support and excelling in get-out-the-vote activities.

Both Lang and Schoch said they and their members will spend hours and hours getting involved in door-to-door canvassing and working phone banks.

What's driving organized labor for the 2008 election is similar to what moved it in 2004 — hostility toward the administration. This time around, it believes President Bush's administration to be the most anti-union in recent memory and the most punitive toward working family issues.

Though Bush and Republican leaders have said their tax and domestic policies have led to a strong economy with low unemployment and interest rates, and more opportunities for workers, Bush is considered radioactive for a majority of union members.

"Most Democratic candidates have the same values as organized labor," said Mike Roche, the president of Local 8938 of the United Steel Workers in Manchester, which represents 125 workers.

"It's not even close, it's so night and day," Roche said about organized labor's perception of the main political parties.

Which isn't to say there isn't room for Republicans.

In addition to Clinton, the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers took the unusual step of endorsing a Republican candidate for the primaries — former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee.

The IAM, one of the nation's largest and most politically active trade unions, said a poll of its 700,000 members showed they wanted more discussion of economic issues from candidates of both parties.

And the New Hampshire Service Employees International Union, the state's largest union with more than 10,000 members, has invited Huckabee to take part in a "Walk a Day in My Shoes" event as part of its effort to serve Republican-leaning members.

Echoing national SEIU President Andy Stern, a spokesman said when it comes to political parties, "We have no permanent allies — only permanent issues."

Never miss a story

Choose the plan that's right for you.
Digital access or digital and print delivery.

Newsletters

Advertise

Original content available for non-commercial use under a Creative Commons license, except where noted.
seacoastonline.com ~ 111 New Hampshire Ave., Portsmouth, NH 03801 ~ Privacy Policy ~ Terms Of Service